Lookie what I made!!

I am so proud of myself. It is well known in my family that I CAN NOT sew. I have tried and tried in the past. Both my Mom and my Step Mom have tried to teach me... numerous times, but usually I just make a mess!

The sewing machine somehow manages to get away from me and stitch things that aren't supposed to be stitched. I stick and poke myself with the pins, pin things together that don't go together and on and on and on...

BUT suddenly I CAN SEW! I took on this little handbag first, just for fun. I have been knitting for a few years and enjoy designing my own things, like sweaters for my little dog, scarves, washclothes, pretty easy stuff... so I thought "I can design a little hand bag and I'll just sew it by hand!" And I DID it! I am so proud of myself right now, I just had to share =)

This is the front of the little hand bag. I used brown felt for the outside with raspberry embroidery floss to sew it all together. I lined it with a pretty bright blue felt.

Here is a picture of the inside. There is a pocket on each side...

I made this little applique out of other felt and the center of the flower is a button. The handles are just foot long dowels! I think it's so cute and it works well too! I plan on painting the dowels brown to match and then it will be finished!

So after that, I thought I was pretty impressive. I moved onto a drawstring back pack. I've been needing one for when I go on walks and bike rides with the boys, but they are so expensive! I looked one over at the store the other day and thought it couldn't be too hard. Well it wasn't exactly easy, but I did manage it!! Again, no pattern, I just looked at the draw string back pack that my boys have and figured it out as best I could. I had to make up a few things, but it WORKS! I am so excited!!

It's a linen fabric, double up to make it a little stronger. I embroidered the flowers onto the front by hand, then sewed it all up, by hand =)


It's not white, but a nice off white. The cording is natural cotton clothesline cord that I had in the closet! (This is all stuff I had around the house, I didn't have to go buy anything except an embroidery hoop.)


So there you go! I DID it! I have all kinds of ideas in my head now. I can barely cut up t-shirts fast enough to provide myself with fabric! I found an idea in a magazine on how to make grocery bags out of used t-shirts. I've sewed up a few, it would go faster with a sewing machine, but I enjoy doing it by hand.